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mONDAY • AUGUST 01 • 2016
DIMAPUR • Vol. XI • Issue 210 • 12 PAGes • 5
T H e
ESTD. 2005
P o W e R
Art is love creating the new world and justice is love rolling up its sleeves to heal the old one The dark side of President Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly but popular drugs war in Philippines PAGE 09
reflections
By Sandemo Ngullie
Kohima ward panchayats lament failure to implement govt schemes
o F
T R u T H
— N. T. Wright
Hamilton wins German GP to extend lead
PAGE 02
PAGE 12
Delayed Dhansiri-Zubza rail line to come to life Union Railway Minister to lay foundation stone today imkong Walling Dimapur | July 31
our road is so treacherious.he absolutely refuse to drive without a bottle of Mc by his side.”
The Morung Express Poll QuEsTion
Vote on www.morungexpress.com sMs your answer to 9862574165 Is the younger Naga generation willing and committed to rising above tribal and factional politics?
Yes
no
others
Can NBCC’s admission of failure as a Church be seen as an opportunity to start doing and speaking what is right? Yes
72%
no
10%
others
18%
Details on page 7
Petrol cut by Rs 1.42 a litre, diesel by Rs 2.01 NEw DElhi, July 31 (iANS): Amid the recent fluctuation in global oil prices, state-run Indian Oil Corp (IOC) cut the price of transport fuels on Sunday effective from midnight, of petrol by Rs 1.42 a litre and of diesel by Rs 2.01, both at Delhi, with corresponding decrease in other states. Making its previous fortnightly revision in fuel prices on July 16, IOC had cut petrol by Rs 2.25 a litre and diesel by Rs 42 paise, both at Delhi. Petrol per litre from Monday will cost Rs 61.09 in Delhi, Rs 64.97 in Kolkata, Rs 65.70 in Mumbai and Rs 60.65 in Chennai. Similarly, diesel will cost Rs 52.27 in Delhi, Rs 54.57 in Kolkata, Rs 57.47 in Mumbai and Rs 53.73 in Chennai.
College of veterinary science & animal husbandry KohimA, July 31 (mExN): The College of Veterinary Science & Animal Husbandry will be formally inaugurated at Jalukie by Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Radha Mohan Singh, on August 6 at 2:30pm. Chief Minister T R. Zeliang will deliver the keynote address. Short speeches will be delivered by Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra Secretary DARE & Director General ICAR, New Delhi, Dr. S.V. Ngachan, Director ICAR, Research Complex for NE region, Barapani, Umian, Dr. Abhijit Mitra Director NRC on Mithun, Jharnapani and S. Chuba Longkumer, Parliamentary Secretary for Veterinary & Animal Husbandry, Government of Nagaland. Welcome address will be delivered by Prof. M. Premjit Singh, Vice Chancellor CAU Imphal. The function will be chaired by Nagaland State Chief Secretary Pankaj Kumar while vote of thanks will be proposed by M.K. Mero, Commissioner & Secretary for Veterinary & Animal Husbandry.
Almost a decade after it was announced, the long awaited Dhansiri-Zubza rail line project will officially come to life on August 1, 2016. The foundation stone laying ceremony for the 90.5km Broad Gauge (BG) line will be held today at the Dimapur Railway Station with the Union Railway Minister, Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu, doing the honours. The new BG line will break off from the Dhansiri rail station in Karbi-Anglong and pass over the Dhansiri River before covering a distance of less than 20 km (approximate) through the plains of Dhansiripar sub-division, snaking up the hills from Shoxuvi to culminate at Zubza in Kohima district. The Dhansiri station is less than 5 km west of Dhansiripar sub-divisional headquarters under Dimapur district. Initially proposed to start from the Dimapur Railway Station, the present alignment Dhansiri-DhansiriparShoxuvi-Molvom-Khaibung-Chephema-Khabvuma-Zubza was finalised after two initial surveys faced opposition from land owners and the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. The first alignment from Toulazouma via Chumukedima not only faced opposition from landowners but was also reported to be technically not feasible.
saliEnT FEaTurEs oF ThE ProjECT
Length Tunnels Total length of tunnels No. of tall bridges Major bridges Minor bridges Total length of bridges New stations Ruling gradient No. of stations Total land required
90.5km 9 21km 5 24 89 4.438km 7 1 in 80 8 (Dhansiri, Dhansiripar, Shukhovi, Molvom, Khaibung, Chephema, Khabvuma, Zubza) 940.5 hectare
FinanCial DETails
Year of Sanction Lenght Sanctioned cost Expenditure upto 31.03.2016 Fund allocation for FY 2016-17 Expenditure in 2016-17 upto June 2016 Cumulative financial progress upto June 2016
The second survey was also shelved as it cut through the Nagaland Zoological Park. The alignment was later revised and the rail head moved to Dhansiri station 19km from Dimapur, from where the new BG line will emerge. The problem of compensating landowners, like any public project in Nagaland, was reported to have played a major role in delaying the start of the project. With a projected cost estimate of Rs. 2500 crores, the project completion date has been set as March
2007-2008 90.5km Rs. 2315.30cr Rs. 145.45cr Rs. 350cr Rs. 2.6cr 6.4% Source: NFR
2020. The Chief Administrative Officer of the project, Ajit Pandit feels that the completion deadline can be met if all goes according to plan. “The (route) alignment has been consented to by the government. Hopefully there will be no problem,” said Pandit, speaking to The Morung Express on Sunday. Laying the track will require around 900 hectares of land. Out of this, around 300 hectares have been acquired and the landowners compensated, he said, while adding that work has already started in sections
railways to invest rs 7,000 crore in ne
AgArtAlA, July 31 (iANS): The Railways will invest Rs 7,000 crore in the current fiscal (201617) to develop its network in the seven northeastern states, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said on Sunday. “In 2014-15, the railway ministry invested Rs 2,702 crore for (this purpose). In the current financial year, the investment will be more than Rs 7,000 crore,” Prabhu said here after flagging off the Agartala-Delhi weekly passenger train service. “Northeast India is a priority area for the central government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is personally giving special emphasis for the all round development of the region,” he said. “Increase of inter-state connectivity and connectivity between the region and the rest of the country are being given the highest priority. Available connectivity will boost the region’s
where land deals has been finalised. According to him, the project can meet the March 2020 deadline provided the process of land acquisition poses no roadblock. In this regard, he said that the role of the Nagaland State Government and the public in particular will prove to be crucial. Compensation for landowners at the rate of Rs. 25 per square foot (for rural areas) has been released through the Nagaland State Government for the land already acquired, he said, though the amount
economy,” Prabhu said. Bangladesh Railway Minister Mazibul Hoque, Tripura Governor Tathagata Roy, Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain and top officials of the Indian and Bangladesh governments were present at the flagging off ceremony at the Agartala railway station. Prabhu invited the Bangladesh railway minister to come to Delhi to discuss the increased railway connectivity between India and Bangladesh. “India is keen to increase railway connectivity with Bangladesh. If the facilities of the Chittagong port can be used, then trade and economy of both northeast India and Bangladesh will flourish,” He added. The railway minister said that to boost tourism in northeast India, his ministry would sign an agreement with the state governments of the region to undertake
involved was not disclosed. “Whatever is reasonable we can give, what is not reasonable we cannot give,” maintained Pandit. Asked what would be the total cost of the land required for the project, he approximated that it could be around Rs. 500 crores. As per an RTI reply, the Nagaland State Government has acquired 933.28 hectares of land for the Dhansiri-Zubza BG line at Rs. 25 and Rs. 60. While the ‘Total cost of land’ was not indicated in the reply, the ‘Actual payment made’ was entered as Rs.
49,93,46,476/- (rupees forty nine crore, ninety three lakh, forty six thousand, four hundred and seventy six). Around 2.5 km of the line falls within Karbi-Anglong district in Assam as in the portion of land between Dhansiri station and the Dhansiri River, which acts as the interstate boundary in that area. On this, Pandit said that the necessary procedure is in progress with land owners of the area. Further asked whether the sanctioned cost of Rs. 2315 will cover the expens-
NBCC admission finds resonance, but what next?
Morung Poll results raise questions for Naga leaders
Morung Express news Dimapur | July 31
While the admittance of failure from the leader of a foremost church council in Nagaland was seen as recognition of its weaknesses and shortcoming, the recurring question among many readers is “What’s next?” Rev. Dr. Zelhou Keyho, General Secretary of Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC), the apex body of the dominant Baptist churches in Nagaland, admitted on July 22 that the Church has “failed the people” while launching its Clean Election Campaign (CEC). Consequently, The Morung Express asked its reader last week, “Can NBCC’s admission of failure as a Church be seen as an opportunity to start doing and speaking what is right?” An overwhelming 72% of the respondent agreed while 8% disagreed and 18% said ‘other’. However the massive endorsements came with a rider. Can it translate into some substantive changes on the ground? It is inherent awareness of social change for the betterment of the society, but “can we change for the better?” asked one respondent adding, “We are good at lectures but do not walk the talk. We are not admit-
ting the truth.” NBCC coming out to admit its shortcomings are a very significant gesture, said another while expecting such action from other mass based organisations. “The church has confessed. Now, the people who form our Govt & Bureaucracy should follow suit,” opined another. Is it ‘show-off’ again? There are skeptics as well. It’s another gimmick, one time admission cannot wash away everything, a reader said casually. “If NBCC is serious they need to issue a press statement where they clearly say that they have committed wrong and are seeking forgiveness from the people. Till such an official statement is passed, I doubt it,” opined another. While others opined that NBCC’s admission of past mistakes is a good start, more has to be done. A good beginning but needs coordinated effort For those 18% who responded “others,” there is an agreement that the admission is a good start and a good opportunity to start anew but individuals need to “participate and support.” Others remained adamant until they see changes on the ground and wondered whether the Church learned from its mistakes. Many consider it a collective responsibility, not the church’s alone. Accountability and integrity must start from each of us from top to the bottom otherwise we will be discussing the same corruption
es involved, he replied that working in hilly terrain normally incurs additional costs. According to a project brochure released by the NFR, the work will be executed in 3 phases Dhansiri-Shoxuvi section (16km) as the first phase, Shoxuvi-Khaibong (30km) as the second and Khaibong-Zubza (45km) as the third. The first is targeted for completion by December 2018, the second by December 2019 and the third by March 2020. The line will culminate 16 km short of Kohima.
a woman pulls a handcart through a waterlogged road as it rains in Kolkata. The current climate models suggest greater variability in monsoon rainfall from year to year in a warmer world. in the future, it is expected that there will be extreme weather events with excessive rainfall in some years with low to very low rainfall in other years. The indian summer climate in the coming century looks to be wetter on average, together with flood and drought conditions occurring more often. scientists have suggested the possibility that the monsoon may become less stable as a result of climate change. Given this prediction, there is an urgent need to improve the science of monsoon predictions and its applications. (REUTERS Photo)
and bad roads and electricity 50 years from now, opined another. Another respondent posed, “Who cast the votes? Are we a part of the problem or a part of the solution?” Some readers also wondered whether the General Secretary has admitted “failure” in his personal capacity or on behalf of NBCC. Remedial measures As a head start to the clean election campaign, some readers suggested removing the membership of those Church members named in corruption cases. Others called for refusing tithes from those “who own property and assets which are higher than their known source of income.” “Let the contesting candidates swear before congregation and God that they will not use money and muscle power during or after elections.” Some also suggested revamping the Clean Election Campaign (CEC) and introducing it from the villages instead of Kohima. But at the end of the day, there was a common consensus that if individual do not change and translate into societal change, the CEC exercise will once again prove futile. “Who is a church? Church is us. Why NBCC failed? Because we failed. What should be done? We should all start changing instead of pointing at NBCC because it is just a name and the real NBCC is us.” Morung Poll results on page 7
specific joint tourism development projects. He said a passenger train between Agartala and Kolkata will start in August. Bangladesh Railway Minister Mazibul Hoque said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had announced a revival of all the pre-1965 railway connectivity with India. “We want very close connectivity between our two friends (India and Bangladesh) and more closer people to people relations.” Hoque, who came here on Sunday to attend the function, said Modi and Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar had agreed to help Bangladesh to curb terrorism in the country. Sarkar said: “Without the development of connectivity, how can industrialisation take place and boost the economy?” He said earlier Congress Prime Ministers, including the late Rajiv Gandhi, seriously neglected the demand for extension of railway network in Tripura.
Nagaland Cong speaks on need for ‘factual’ E-roll
DimApur, July 31 (mExN): The Nagaland Congress (NC), a new political party floated in the State in June this year, has appreciated the Election Department for “detecting and deleting several lakhs of multiple and bogus voters” in the State. With much more left to do, the NC has also appealed to local self government units and concerned citizens of Nagaland to give “full cooperation” to the Department to bring about “tempered free, factual” Electoral Roll (E-roll) in the State. The NC, which will contest State elections in 2018, has reiterated the power of the people stating that “The fate of democracy lies in the hands of the electorates.” A press statement from Vaprumu Demo, General Secretary and Media & Spokesperson of the NC, today stated that the party supports the “intensive revision” of E-roll in the State. Election manipulation “Election has become such an expensive thing for contesting candidates and easiest means for making fast money by the electorates,” stated the NC. This has led to the ‘intentional manipulation’ of the E-roll in Nagaland, it claimed. The candidate ‘inflates’ the figure in his village/town “to enhance his vote bank beyond imagination” and the voters hold “multiple/bogus voters’ list to demand cash or kind from each contesting candidate.”
“It is an organized manipulation with full involvement of village council/municipal authority, enumerators, political parties and contesting candidates. The failure, rather routine attitude of Election Authority towards visibly unrealistic E-Roll without enforcing stringent measure at appropriate time has really hampered democratic election process for many years in the past,” observed the NC reiterating the need for a “factual” E-roll. Acknowledging that a “positive step” towards this direction has been undertaken by the Election Commission of India (ECI), the NC drew attention to the efforts of the Election Department in Nagaland headed by its CEO, Sanjay Kumar, IAS, to “rectify the enormous anomalies” in E-roll. Areas of concern “However, it may be noted with seriousness that E-Roll conducted on the basis of existing census is still questionable for reasons specified above,” noted the NC, while stating that the Census 2001 was “challenged and rejected” by State Government for “extreme abnormality” and the “distortion of population reality” with the ‘intent’ to “inflate” the Eroll. “Census 2011 recorded a reverse order of population in most districts in the State and this fact endorses our contention that E-Roll must be likewise reviewed drastically to bring it down to reality,” the new political
party maintained. It also asked the Election Authority to consider instances where E-roll is “higher or equivalent or above the 60:40 ration of E-Roll and Census figures.” Giving an instance, the Nagaland Congress stated, “a rich man opened a farm in the outskirt of a Village somewhere in Nagaland where two persons were posted to man the farm and against this farm a ghost population of 400 odd was registered in the Census.” “Similarly, most of the villages have unrealistic census figures as there used to be competition between the villages to have the bigger population size than the other. With the kind of the spirit of competition, the national ceiling prescribed for decadal growth at 22 % is never adhered to. Besides, multiple entries in census enumeration is rampant,” alleged the NC, stressing that these ‘manipulations’ are often done at the “behest of mostly the rich and the powerful.” Another area of “grave concern,” observed the NC, is the presence of a “floating population” in Nagaland. “There is cross border registration as citizens as well as voters in the State of Nagaland. These people hold dual citizenship in two or more states. During elections this category of people used to participate in more than one State as voters,” the NC informed. This practice, it stated, is “illegal” and creates “nuisance” for “law abiding citizens.”